Brics: New Dimensions of China’S International Cooperation

Chapter 4 brics: New Dimensions of China’s International Cooperation

1 The Origin of brics

Along with the G-77+China, the brics group of emerging economies—Brazil, Russia, India, China, and South Africa—is a group Africa should closely watch, in its developing relationship with the prc. There were, indeed, discussion between the four original BRIC members - i.e. Brazil, Russia, India and China - that these four countries believed they could become more involved in global affairs. This is how BRIC nations were originally formed. Being involved in global affairs means initiating a new pole of influence in international relations, depending on the economic and financial power of the new group. As Dr. Alexandra Arkhangelskaya, of the Institute for African Studies at the Russian Academy of Sciences, put it: “It should be noted that analysts of Goldman Sachs did not assume the existence of economic policy coordination between the bric countries. Especially since it was not assumed that the bric countries would form an economic bloc. But over time, there were signs that the four bric countries are seeking to form a political club or formation to convert its growing economic power into greater geopolitical ‘influence.’”1 China plays a major role in this group, which formed on the margins of the UN General Assembly in New York in September 2006. In 2010 the acronym was changed to include South Africa. Forum brics was established in 2011 and works as an independent international organization, building partnership and collabo- ration among brics’ member state institutions. The Forum focuses on key areas such as governance and leadership, prevention of corruption, poverty, healthcare, and alternative sources of energy. According to the Forum, the brics acronym “has come into widespread use as a symbol of the shift in global economic power away from the de- veloped G7 economies to the developing nations.”2 The brics New De- velopment Bank, established in 2014 with a budget of $1 billion, is already

1 Dr. Alexandra A. Arkhangelskaya: “The BRICS States: Images and Prospects in Africa,” Centre for Information and International Relations Institute for African Studies, Russian Academy of Sciences. 2 brics Forum, www.bricsforum.org/sample- page/(accessed July 1, 2017)

© Koninklijke Brill NV, Leiden, 2019 | DOI:10.1163/9789004388246_005 brics 37 considered a force in international relations, and a concrete manifestation of multipolarity. 3 According to critics, South Africa’s inclusion in brics was a result of Chi- na’s desire to expand its geographic representation in the group, and assert its multipolar and non-Western nature. I can only applaud the move. The prc’s strategy reflected the Bandung 1955 spirit of solidarity among developing nations, later repeated in international forums like the nam and the G-77+China. Thus, China’s inclusive move should be applauded by advocates of South-South cooperation.4 I also rally behind the view that brics is going to change the nature of international economic relations, so far dominated by wealthy Western countries and Japan. brics brings together Eastern Europe (via Russia), Asia, Latin America, and Africa. The new alliance will play a decisive role in influencing the global financial market, opening new windows of opportunity for Africa. From the beginning, China has played a prominent role in brics. “As China’s relative economic growth has continued apace, its dominance within brics has become increasingly entrenched,” writes Zachary Keck, former managing editor of The Diplomat. “Almost regardless of its intentions, China’s size and national power make it the unavoidable hegemony of brics. China’s growing dominance within brics can be demonstrated in any number of ways. Most succinctly, China’s gdp is over 1.5 trillion dollars larger than the combined economic output of the other four brics members. China is the largest single- nation trading partner of Russia, Brazil, and South Africa.”5 Africa needs to ‘do its homework’ to strategize how it can best benefit from its relationship with brics. “The recent attention on Africa by the brics [nations] is not solely based on an altruistic goal to improve the economic well- being of Africans,” write Mwangi S. Kimenyi and Zenia Lewis of the Brookings Institution. “Rather, bric countries are trying to maximize their own strategic economic and political interests by engaging with African countries. Therefore,

3 “BRICS Bank Announces First Set of Loans,” The BRICS Post, April 16, 2016, http://thebrics- post.com/brics-bank-announces-first-set-of-loans/#.WTl4oxPyvSk 4 According to Dr. Alexandra A. Arkhangelskaya, of the Institute for African Studies at the Rus- sian Academy of Sciences, “The acceptance of South Africa in this group reflected the fact that in recent years there has been increasing global attention to the problems of Africa. The continent is of particular importance in connection with the sprawling economic problems in the world [as] Africa becomes a zone of strategic interests of new poles of power. Thus, the interaction of BRICS, both individually and as an association with African countries, is an important aspect of foreign policy activity.” (“The BRICS States: Images and Prospects in Africa”). 5 Zachary Keck, “China and the BRICS: Unavoidable Hegemony,” The Diplomat, March 29, 2013.